Favorite Bookcase

Favorite Bookcase
My favorite bookcase—Gladys Taber, Elizabeth von Arnim, Rosamunde Pilcher, Elizabeth Goudge, Persephone, British Library Women Writers, Virago Classics and more!

Wednesday, February 25, 2026

D.E. Stevenson Book Collection (and Readalong)! ☺️πŸ“˜πŸ’•πŸŒΈ

Do you love D.E. Stevenson as much as I do? πŸ˜πŸ“š❤️ If so, I'm co-hosting a DES Read-Along with Sabine and Niki on Instagram and we would be so happy if you'd join us! 

HELPFUL INFO:

March 2026: Kate Hardy (Tentative Discussion Date March 28/29th)
April 2026: The Musgraves
May 2026: Five Windows 
Hashtag: If you want to tag us (@babsbelovedbooks@nikilovestoread @sabines.literary.world and @dean_street_press_ltd) in any read-along posts you share on IG, please use the hashtag #BuncleAndBeyond so we won't miss it!
To Join: Simply read along with us and, if you'd like, join our IG discussions at the end of the month. No pressure to do anything else. We will share all information about the date of discussions on our IG posts. 

Lucky for us, Dean Street Press has republished 19 of D.E. Stevenson's novels for readers to enjoy! The paperback covers are gorgeous! But, if paperbacks are hard for you to read, it's so awesome that they offer e-book versions, too. Yay! (Psst...there may be two more being published at some point this year! Keep an eye out on the DSP Instagram!) 

(Thw website, Book Series in Order, also has additional (and interesting) information on Dorothy Emily Stevenson!)

So far, I've read 43/53 books by D.E. stevenson...according to the lists I've found. If you see any books I'm missing—please share the title(s) below or send me a DM via Instagram! 

I'm really excited to share my vintage and republished DES editions with you! Here they are, along with titles and book ratings!

MY BOOK RATINGS:

The English Air 5🌟
Blow the Wind Southerly/The Enchanted Isle/Charlotte Fairlie 5🌟
Rochester’s Wife 5🌟
Katherine Wentworth 5🌟
Katherine’s Marriage 5🌟
The Fair Miss Fortune 5🌟
Green Money 5🌟
Young Mrs. Savage 4.5🌟
The House on the Cliff 5🌟
Blue Sapphire 5🌟
Alister and Co./It’s Nice to Be Me 5🌟 (poetry)
Sarah Morris Remembers 5🌟

Sarah's Cottage 4🌟 
Bel Lamington 4🌟
Fletcher's End 5🌟
Vittoria Cottage 5🌟
Music in the Hills 3🌟 
Winter and Rough Weather 4🌟
Anna & Her Daughters 4..5🌟

Mrs. Tim of the Regiment 5🌟
Mrs. Tim Carries On 4🌟
Mrs. Tim Gets a Job 4🌟
Mrs. Tim Flies Home 4.5🌟
The Baker’s Daughter/Miss Bun 4.5🌟
Miss Buncle’s Book 4🌟
Miss Buncle Married 4🌟
The Two Mrs. Abbots 4.5🌟
The Four Graces 4.5🌟
Gerald and Elizabeth 4🌟 
Amberwell 4🌟
Summerhills 4🌟
Celia's House 4🌟
Listening Valley 5🌟

 The Young Clementina 4🌟
Still Glides the Stream 4🌟
Spring Magic 3🌟
The Musgraves 4🌟
Peter West 3.5🌟
Emily Dennistoun 4🌟
The Tall Stranger 4.5🌟
Rosabelle Shaw 3.75🌟
Crooked Adam 3🌟
The House of the Deer 2🌟

TBR:

Kate Hardy 
Five Windows 
The Empty World/A World in Spell
Found in the Attic 
Smouldering Fire 
Golden Days
Jean Erekin’s Secret 
Portrait of Saskin

The Starry Mantle (poetry) 
Meadow-flowers (poetry)

(Note: Some of the books in the TBR list above were also republished by Greyladies or Lume Books and, if you're lucky, can be found online via Ebay, Abebooks, ThriftBooks, Mercari, Etsy, Biblio, World of Books, or Amazon.) 

I hope February treated you well, book friends! I would love to hear your favorite DES titles! Let me know in the comments! 

I'll leave things here with a photo of the snow (at least a foot and a half and more on the way!) at our place in New Hampshire. Crossing my fingers that you'll join our D.E. Stevenson read-along for March, April and/or May! πŸ₯°πŸ“•

Happy Reading and Tons of Hugs!! πŸ’•❄️πŸ€—❄️πŸ’•


Saturday, February 14, 2026

Lovely Love Books πŸ₯°πŸ’✨❤️

Happy Valentine's Day, Friends! πŸ˜πŸ’•πŸ’•

A wonderful Dean Street Press Furrowed Middlebrow book by Molly Clavering!

How has February been treating you so far? It's still pretty cold here in New Hampshire πŸ₯Ά❄️ (single digits at night and highs of 30s during the day) and we've still got over a foot of snow on the lawn. Trying to go to the backyard compost area is a challenge because the snow is literally up to (or over!) my knees πŸ˜‚ 

I've been loving chatting with Liz (@pony.books) about our upcoming trip to London in April (yippeeee!), buddy reading vintage YA and romances with Andrea (@sorrythankyou79) and talking to Gina (@gina.stanyer.books) about our planners/traveler's journals and all things cozy! 

Stories for Lovers by the British Library Women Writers Collection!

On Saturday, Ian and I are planning on going to our favorite local coffee shop (Sunny Cafe!), watching a show together (Downton Abbey...again!) and maybe getting Thai for dinner (yumm!). I'm sure Ian will also want to spend some time with his new-to-him pinball machine, Mr. & Mrs. Pac-Man (Did I ever mention that Ian has an arcade/pinball/movie room in our house? See end of post for a photo of his pinball machine. Let me know if you want me to share a video or more photos of his arcade room!) and I'll probably knit on my Harry Potter-themed scarves while re-watching a favorite movie. 

Full of poignant short stories of so many lovely British Women Writers!

What are YOUR plans for V-Day this year? ☺️πŸ’“πŸŽ 

Okay...onto the BOOKS

Here are all of the books in my collection that have "LOVE" in the title! I know I post a lot of these subject/season themed collections, but it's definitely a passion of mine - lol. Do you like having books organized by theme or season? I also like to organize my bookshelves by author or genre (vintage middle grade, children's, holiday, etc.). So...for now...here are my love books with ratings—I will add links to my reviews on Goodreads soon!

Beautiful Emma Bridgewater mug from Gina and Lovepop card from Ian!

LOVE BOOKS & RATINGS:  

πŸ’ Love Comes Home by Molly Clavering 4🌟
πŸ’ Stories for Lovers by British Library Women Writers 4.25🌟
πŸ’ How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry 4.5🌟
πŸ’ Paris—And My Love by Mary Burchell 4🌟

Lovely vintage Harlequin romances by Mary Burchell and some of my vintage makeup collection!

πŸ’ The Love Child by Edith Oliver 4🌟
πŸ’ Love by Elizabeth von Arnim 4.5🌟
πŸ’ Loves Music, Loves to Dance by Mary Higgins Clark 4.5🌟
πŸ’ Love by Susan Branch 5🌟

Susan Branch books never fail to make me happy!

Best book everrrr! It's one of my all-time favorite books!

πŸ’ No Fond Return of Love by Barbara Pym 3🌟
πŸ’ The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford 4🌟
πŸ’ Book Love by Debbie Tung 5🌟

Such a sweetly illustrated book about book love!

πŸ’ Love is in the Earth by Melody 4🌟
πŸ’ Caitlin Love Trilogy by Francine Pascal 4🌟
πŸ’ The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman 5🌟
πŸ’ A Long Fatal Love Chase by Louisa May Alcott 5🌟
πŸ’ The Ladies of Covington Send Their Love by Joan Medlicott 3🌟
πŸ’ Paris in Love by Eloisa James 5🌟
πŸ’ Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert 3🌟
πŸ’ Love Over Scotland by Alexander McCall Smith 4🌟
πŸ’ Peony in Love by Lisa See 3🌟
πŸ’ Live with the Things You Love by Mary Randolph Carter 2🌟
πŸ’ No Lovelier Spring by Lida Larrimore 3.5🌟

Lida Larrimore's vintage romances are so thoughtful!

The cutest book in the whole world!!

πŸ’ Raggedy Ann: A Thank You, Please and I Love You Book by Norah Smaridge 5🌟
πŸ’ Come Back to Me, Beloved by Kathleen Norris 5🌟

A 5🌟 Kathleen Norris novel - sooo perfect! A buddy read with Gina Stanyer.

πŸ’ French Girl in Love by Maysie Greig 3.5🌟
πŸ’ Odds on Love by Maysie Greig 4🌟
πŸ’ The Laurel Bush: An Old-Fashioned Love Story by Dinah M. Craik 4.5🌟
πŸ’ Love and Friendship by Jane Austen 3.5🌟
πŸ’ The Book of My Beloveds by Esmerelda Little Flame 5🌟

I have poetry in this lovely book! Available on Amazon

πŸ’ A Fine Romance: Falling In Love with the English Countryside by Susan Branch 5🌟
πŸ’ Enid Blyton's Nature Lover's Book 3.5🌟
πŸ’ Learning To Love Yourself by Gay Hendricks 4🌟
πŸ’ The Last Letter from Your Lover by JoJo Moyes 5🌟
πŸ’ The Demon Lover by Victoria Holt 3🌟
πŸ’ The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold 4🌟
πŸ’ Friends, Lovers, Chocolate by Alexander McCall Smith 3🌟
πŸ’ Sweet Valley High books by Francine Pascal (too many to list with love in the title - lol!) generally all 3-4🌟

Love-titled books on a pink bamboo lace shawl that I knit myself!

LOVE BOOK TBR  

Here is a list of all the books I'm hoping to read within the next year or less. Any favorite books listed here? See above photo to see some of the covers!

Photo from Dean Street Press Ltd. website

❤️ Love in a Mist by Susan Scarlett
❤️ First Love by Gay Head    
❤️ Look Back with Love by Dodie Smith
❤️ All for Love by Tasha Tudor
❤️ The Lovely Day by Dorothy Evelyn Smith  
❤️ The Long Love by Pearl S. Buck
❤️ How to Love by Thich Nhat Hanh  
❤️ The Love Child by Fiona Hill
❤️ A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen
❤️ Love for Lydia by H.E. Bates 

I would LOVE to know your favorite books with "love" in the title or any books that just give you that loving feeling πŸ˜ŠπŸ’“ 

Wishing you the most wonderful Valentine's Day (no matter who you're with or even if you've taken a self-care day of your own!) and sending lots and lots of love from meeeeee! 

As always, I'll try to keep this list updated as the months (or years!) go by. If you ever use my list for anything fun, please tag me on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, or anywhere on social media. You can also email me: babsbelovedbooks at gmail dot com! ☺️✨🌸 

Ian's new-to-him 1980s pinball machine is so cool!

Ian playing his new Mr. & Mrs. Pac-Man pinball! 


Thursday, January 29, 2026

Favorite Winter Books - Vintage Edition! 🀩❄️πŸ’™πŸ“˜

Happy Mid-Winter! πŸ€©πŸ’™❄️✨

I'm really excited to share my winter book collection! 😊 These are all of the books I own, read or want-to-read with “winter” in the title (or with a winter-themed cover.) Do you see any favorites here? πŸ€”πŸ“š

Books with Winter in the Title: Photo A
I’m MOST excited to read Winter's Grace by Ruby Ferguson!! Yay! πŸ₯° (Marion @fortheloveofbooks75 was so incredibly kind to ship this book to me from the UK! Thank you, dear friend! πŸ’•)

Winter in the Title: Photo B

WINTER TITLED BOOK RATINGS:

❄️ The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder 4🌟
❄️ Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher  5🌟
❄️ Winter and Rough Weather by D.E. Stevenson 4🌟
❄️ Winter at Thrush Green by Miss Read 5🌟
❄️ Stories for Winter 3.5🌟
❄️ Winter Carnival by Frances Pascal 3🌟
❄️ Winter Spirits by Bridget Collins, etc. 4.25🌟
❄️ A Week in Winter by Marcia Willett 4.5🌟 
❄️ Winter Story by Jill Barklem 4.5🌟
❄️ Honey Bunch: Her First Winter at Snowtop by Helen Louise Thorndyke 4🌟
❄️ The Little Ghost Quilt’s Winter Surprise by Riel Nason 5🌟
❄️ The Winter of the Dollhouse by Laura Amy Schlitz 4🌟 
❄️ A Winter Away by Elizabeth Fair 4🌟
❄️ The Willows in Winter by William Horwood 5🌟 (a gift from Caro at carosbookcase 😍)

READ, BUT DO NOT OWN:
☃️ Winter Cottage by Carol Ryrie Brink 4.5🌟
☃️ Iris in Winter by Elizabeth Cadell 3🌟

The Perfect Winter Children's Book!
WINTER TITLED BOOK TBR:
πŸ’™ The Woods in Winter by Stella Gibbons
πŸ’™ Winter Kitchen by Louise Andrews Kent
πŸ’™ Winter Wedding by Betty Neels
πŸ’™ Winterwood by Dorothy Eden
πŸ’™ A Winter Love Story by Betty Neels
πŸ’™ Emma in Winter by Penelope Farmer
πŸ’™ Jean’s Winter with the Warners by Christine Whiting Parmenter

One of the first Dean Street Press Furrowed Middlebrow books I ever read!

 
WINTER TITLED BOOK WISHLIST:

❄️ Mary Jane Winter Sports by Clara Ingram Judson 
❄️ The Bobbey Twins’ Wonderful Winter Secret by Laura Lee Hope 

Now, here are the books in my collection that have winter-y covers, but don't have "winter" in the title. 

Wintery Covers: Photo A

WINTERY COVER BOOKS:

🌨 Ice on the Lawn by Jill Stevens 3.75🌟 (the sweetest gift from Carla @c.brown685!πŸ’—)
🌨 White Holiday by Viola Bayley 4.5🌟
🌨 Rosemary by Josephine Lawrence 4🌟
🌨 Shoulder the Sky/Winter in Rough Weather by D.E. Stevenson 4🌟
🌨 The Joy of the Snow by Elizabeth Goudge 5🌟

Wintery Covers: Photo B

 WINTERY COVERS TBR:

πŸ’™ Angel on Skis by Betty Cavanna (a buddy read with Andrea @sorrythankyou79 πŸ₯³)
πŸ’™ Brown Door Venture by Pamela Brown (a thoughtful gift from Carla @c.brown685!πŸ’)
πŸ’™ Concerning Casey by Eve Bennett (a wonderful gift from Andrea @sorrythankyou79 πŸ’™)
πŸ’™ Practically Seventeen by Rosamond du Jardin
πŸ’™ The Jennifer Gift by Eunice Young Smith
πŸ’™ The Unfinished House by Margaret Sutton
πŸ’™ The Great Blizzard by Albert E. Idell
πŸ’™ Bobbsey Twins: Merry Days Indoors and Out by Laura Lee Hope

Riel Nason's books are sooo wonderful! I've loved both in the series so far! 5🌟

I hope to update this post every year with new books, photos and ratings! If you have any favorite winter-themed books or winter-titled suggestions for me, please comment below or send me an email! Thank you! 🀩

The best cozy books plus vegan marshmallow squares and a cup of lemon balm tea!

I had to add a couple more photos of wintery books...and my new-to-me Brambly Hedge Winter teacup and snack plate set! Along with the Brambly Hedge Winter Story and A Visit to Brambly Hedge (another awesome Christmas gift from Caro @carosbookcase! ❤️) 

A thoughtful and imaginative contemporary middle grade book!

Here's our house after the snowstorm last weekend...it's so magical!

Warm hugs to you, lovely friends! πŸ’•☃️πŸ€—☃️πŸ’•  

Our New Hampshire home in winter!

P.S. Did I mention that my son, Benji, was born on December 23rd and his middle name is Winter! 😍 (This is a pic of him on his 1st birthday...awww!) 

Baby Ben Winter House


Saturday, January 24, 2026

Favorite 25 Books of 2025! πŸ€©πŸŽ‰πŸ“šπŸŒˆ

Happy New Year, Friends!! πŸ˜πŸ’•✨

I'm just under the wire for posting my 25 Favorite Books of 2025 before the end of January—whew! 

Before I go right into my post, I thought I'd share some of the lovely things happening in my life right now:

πŸ’™ Organizing the details of my April trip with Liz/Raspberry Tart to visit London for the first time! (Ahhh! 🀯 So excited! πŸ₯³)
πŸ’™ Planning my trip to the BFF Sticker Club Camp in September with the BFF Sticker Group! (Yay!! πŸ€©πŸŒˆπŸ’«)
πŸ’™ Currently adoring White Holiday by Viola Bayley (a Children's Press edition πŸ₯°) 
πŸ’™ Re-watching Downton Abbey with Ian
πŸ’™ Movie and knitting dates with Caro ☺️🧑 (Check out her 2025 favorite books!)
πŸ’™ Re-listening to A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie audiobook
πŸ’™ Setting up my cork B6 Traveler's Journal for 2026 with inserts for books read, my planner, to-do list and sketchbook.
πŸ’™ Trying not to collect too many Calico Critter figurines...but it's hard! πŸ˜‚
πŸ’™ Reading as many winter vintage books as possible (and loving it!)  

Okay...FINALLY onto books!

This was another fantastic reading year with 240 BOOKS under my book belt. Woo-hoo

If you'd like to see some of more of My Favorite Books From Past Years, here are links to my Instagram posts:

24 Favs in 2024 

23 Favs in 2023 

22 Favs in 2022

21 Favs in 2021 

Here are the books that brought me the MOST HAPPINESS last year πŸ₯° 

All were 5🌟 ratings and books that I will 100% read again! 

REPUBLISHED BOOKS:
🌟 The Man in the Dark
🌟 Under the Rainbow
🌟 At School with the Stanhopes
🌟 Mothers and Daughters
🌟 The Pink House
🌟 The Strange House

VINTAGE BOOKS:
🌟 A Flute on Mayferry Street
🌟 Pink Sugar
🌟 Taken By the Hand 
🌟 Rochester’s Wife
🌟 Silver Slippers

VINTAGE CHILDREN'S BOOKS:
🌟 Elizabeth of the Garret Theatre
🌟 Black Forest Summer
🌟 All Because of Gina
🌟 The Vine Clad Hill
🌟 It's Nice To Be Me
🌟 Guinea Pig Podge
🌟 The April Baby’s Book of Tunes
🌟 In the Closed Room

NON-FICTION BOOKS:
🌟 A Sense of Seasons
🌟 The Joy of the Snow
🌟 The Book of Stillmeadow
🌟 Audrey at Home
🌟 A Thousand Feasts
🌟 Just Being Audrey


BONUS!!! BEST CONTEMPORARY BOOKS:
🌟 The World at Home by Ginny Kubitz Moyer
🌟 Emma M. Lion Series (especially Volumes 4 & 5) by Beth Brower
🌟 The Rocking of the Ocean by Barbara Matteson 

FAVORITE VINTAGE AUTHORS OF THE YEAR:

πŸ’“ Agatha Christie
πŸ’“ Gladys Taber
πŸ’“ Jean Hersey
πŸ’“ O. Douglas
πŸ’“ Gwendoline Courtney
πŸ’“ D.E. Stevenson
πŸ’“ Susan Scarlett
πŸ’“ Elizabeth Goudge
πŸ’“ Mabel Esther Allan

Do you see any favorite books or authors in this list? 

What was YOUR favorite book of 2025? 🀩🌟 Comment your favs below...I'm dying to know! 

Much love and many warm hugs! πŸ’•❄️πŸ€—❄️πŸ’• 


Thursday, December 18, 2025

Dynamic Duo for Dean Street December! πŸ˜πŸ“šπŸŽ„❤️✨

Happy Furrowed Middlebrow Friday and Happy Dean Street Press December 2025! πŸ₯³πŸ’œ✨

What could be better than spending the most lovely and cozy moments of December snuggled up with a cup of tea and a snack by a warm, crackling fire with a Dean Street Press's Furrowed Middlebrow book? (hint: nothing!)

So many thanks to Liz Dexter at Adventures in Reading for hosting another wonderful wintery month of DSP books! Yippee! ☺️πŸ“˜❄️πŸ’™

Ian's SPAM socks (with container) and his 33-year-old can of unopened SPAM! 

Spam Tomorrow by Verily Anderson 

RATING: 4.5🌟 

A non-stop roller coaster of activity on the home front! 

This wartime memoir by Verily Anderson grabbed me from the very first page until the (wonderfully satisfying) last sentence. At first, I thought that Ms. Anderson's writing was all-over-the-place and it really had my head reeling...BUT...once I got into the rhythm and pace of her thoughts and writing style, it was a JOY to read. 

To me, the life of Verily, her family, her friends (and then later with her husband, Donald) reminds me of these other titles:

❊ The humor, flurry, excitement and coziness of the Mrs. Tim series by D.E. Stevenson
❊ A smidge of the satirical and amusing novels, The Benefactress and The Caravaners, by Elizabeth von Arnim
❊ With a touch of Susan Scarlett's slightly silly and irreverent (but also touching) romance novels. 

Once I got used to the author's writing style (maybe 30% in?), I flew through the rest of the memoir and I didn't want it to end. There's so much to love, lots to laugh about and also a little bit to frustrate in Spam Tomorrow

If you love wartime memoirs, quirky personalities, unbelievably wacky situations and an underlining theme of real life and honest feelings/reactions during the war, this book is for you! I really enjoyed it!

Murder While You Work by Susan Scarlett

RATING: 4.75🌟 

Oooh! This was SO good! I had no idea that Susan Scarlett wrote a murder mystery! 😱

This story had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. It has the perfect blend of coziness, Susan Scarlett/Noel Streatfeild's sparkling writing and intrigue. It was so hard to put down. Wow!

The only reason why I didn't give it a full five stars is because Judy (who I really liked overall) was almost entirely clueless to the affections of a certain war-time colleague. It seems to me that the author wrote her character to be very clever, positive, attractive and observant...but, in this one aspect, she is totally blind to the words and actions of this man. I had such a hard time believing this fact that it frustrated me and I had to bump it down a half star. 😭

But, aside from that, it was AMAZING! I would absolutely re-read this Susan Scarlett novel and...who knows...I might end up changing it to a five star story in the end. 

Highly recommended! One of my Top 3 Susan Scarlett favs! 

I also plan on re-reading Miss Plum and Miss Penny by one of my favorite authors, Dorothy Evelyn Smith this month! It's another Christmas-y favorite of mine! 😍❤️πŸ“šπŸŽ„

NOTE: 

Current Favorite Teas: Organic lemon balmSimpson & Vale's Literary Teas in Goldilocks and the Three Bears or Louisa May Alcott (thoughtful and delicious gifts from Christie @felines_and_flowers!)

Current Favorite Snacks: Gladys Taber's homemade cranberry walnut tea bread, Fine & Raw dark chocolate or oyster crackers

Now, I can't even imagine December without a Dean Street Press book in my hand! I think I already have 2-3 DSP titles in mind for next year. Do you have any suggestions for me? 

What are your favorite drinks or snacks to enjoy while reading? Let me know in the comments below! 

If I can't manage to share another blog post this month, I want to wish all of you the most joyful, healing and peaceful holiday and New Year!! Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog, comment, like my posts on Instagram/Facebook/Goodreads and for always being so caring, supportive and encouraging! It was also so exciting to grow from 1900 to almost 2400 followers on Instagram since early this year...thank you, thank you! 

All of my love, warmest hugs, and wishes for the most cozy and amazing reading for the rest of the year and 2026!! πŸ₯°πŸ’•πŸ€—❄️✨πŸŽπŸ’«❤️πŸ’šπŸŽ„

 

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

The Little Dinner Book Review & BONUS Quite Literally Books Collection! 😍❤️πŸŒŸπŸ“š

I was incredibly charmed by this quaint little book about dining and dinner parties—which was originally published in 1892! I adore cookbooks that you can "read" (similar to cookbooks by Gladys Taber and Nigel Slater) and, even more, I love anything that has to do with entertaining from past decades. This subject is absolutely fascinating to me! 

The Little Dinner with The Magic Pantry Tarot Deck—A Perfect Pairing!

The Little Dinner by Christine Terhune Herrick (published by the wonderful NYC publishing company, Quite Literally Books) had me smirking, surprised, amused and completely enthralled from the very beginning. I made notes and bookmarked several passages to refer to later—not that I'll be giving a 1800s-themed little dinner party any time soon! πŸ˜†

I also found it interesting that, to this author (or perhaps in this time period), a "little dinner" consisted of at least 8 people and a minimum of 3 full meal courses. To me, a little dinner means simply dinner for myself or perhaps crackers and peanut butter (or hummus) with a hot cup of tea and some fruit! A baked potato added if I was really hungry. But, yikes! People coming to MY little dinner would have been deeply disappointed...and hungry!

My favorite sections were the ones discussing the table set up and dining room decor. The color scheme suggestions were wonderfully funny and also informative (if this combination can ever go together in a good way!). It was also a great delight to read through every recipe (I didn't pass over a single one, even though I'm vegan) and learn the types of foods/meals that guests would expect in the late 1800s. Frankly, I'm glad I missed all of that extra fat and meat. So much butter and deep frying! My arteries felt a bit clogged after reaching the index at the end 😱

All in all, reading this gorgeous edition by Quite Literally Books made my experience all the more enjoyable and simply a wonderful treat. Their books are so easy to read from in every way—French flaps, perfect spacing, easy-to-read fonts and a joy to hold in the hands (especially while reading in bed!) 

If you're a vintage/antique cookbook lover like I am, you NEED The Little Dinner in your collection. Not only because the cover design is dazzingly attractive, but because the content is solidly engaging and thought provoking. At least a 4🌟 read! Be prepared to stay up late into the night reading this book...and, perhaps, have a snack on hand just in case you get the munchies (he he).

Endless gratitude and thanks to the awesome and always friendly QLB Team for sending me this book (and two others!) for me to read and review. The Little Dinner is a GEM! 

I truly hope they will republish some of her other non-fiction books, as well! I would love to read more πŸ˜πŸ“š

QLB, please republish more of Christine Terhune Herrick's titles! I'm very intrigued by: 

❊ Cradle and Nursery
❊ First Aid to the Young Housekeeper
❊ Sunday Night Suppers
❊ Housekeeping Made Easy
❊ What to Eat, How to Serve It
❊ The Expert Maid-Servant

I can't wait to read Herland and Who Would Have Thought It? next! 🀩🌟πŸ₯³πŸ’œπŸ“š 

Don't forget to check out my previous Quite Literally Books blog post!

Which title would you choose to read first? Tell me in the comments below 😍

Happy December, Friends! I hope to share at least one more blog post before the end of year. I hope it will be my TOP FAVORITE 25 BOOKS of 2025

Much love, as always! πŸ’•❄️πŸ€—❄️πŸ’•

 

D.E. Stevenson Book Collection (and Readalong)! ☺️πŸ“˜πŸ’•πŸŒΈ

Do you love D.E. Stevenson as much as I do? πŸ˜πŸ“š❤️ If so, I'm co-hosting a DES Read-Along with Sabine and Niki on Instagram and we w...